Black Knight (A Black's Bandits Novel): HOT Heroes for Hire: Mercenaries Read online

  “I brought coffee.”

  “You’re my gallant knight,” she said without thinking, and immediately wanted to kick herself for it. He’d told her his call sign used to be Knight, and it was clear he had some baggage with that name, but he didn’t seem phased by what she’d said. Not that she hadn’t said it before, but she was determined to be careful about it.

  He came over and perched on the side of the bed, handing her the steaming mug. “I live to serve, my lady.”

  Libby couldn’t help but smile. Her heart ached with emotion. “I believe you. Especially after last night.”

  He reached over and tugged the covers down until her breasts were exposed. “Ah, much better.”

  “You do realize it’s chilly, right?”

  His gaze sparkled. “Of course I do. I like the way your nipples tighten against the cold.”

  “So you don’t mind letting me freeze for your viewing pleasure?”

  He grinned as he took a sip of coffee. “Nope, not at all.”

  “You’re a bad man, Jared Fraser.”

  “Only when the reward is worth it.”

  Libby sipped her coffee and tried to ignore the low hum of desire starting to buzz through her system. She’d had sex only a few hours ago, but she wanted more. She always wanted more. Didn’t matter that she could still feel the ache from the last time, or that she was hungry and needed to shower.

  Jared reached out and cupped one of her breasts. A shiver rolled through her at his touch.

  “You have the prettiest nipples, Libby.” His thumb ghosted over one of them, and the sizzle shot straight to her core.

  “They’re just nipples. I’m sure you’ve seen lots.”

  His gaze met hers. “I’ve seen enough to know what I like. And I like these.” He pinched softly, and Libby couldn’t stop the moan in her throat.

  “I don’t know why,” she gasped. “My boobs are too small and my nipples are too big. They aren’t proportional.”

  Jared’s hand fell away. “Are you seriously telling me I shouldn’t like your breasts because they aren’t proportional?”

  “Um, well… maybe? I mean there are such nicer ones out there. Bigger, prettier. More to get your hands on.”

  She was babbling.

  Jared took her coffee cup and set it on the nightstand. He set his down beside it. Then he stripped the covers off her and dragged her down until he could hover over top of her, his body big and hot above hers.

  “Do I need to remind you how much you turn me on, Liberty King? How much I want to fuck you until you can’t form a coherent sentence?” He dropped his mouth to her neck, trailed his tongue to a hard nipple. “I love making you so hot you can’t talk. It’s one of my favorite things to do.”

  He sucked her nipple into his mouth and her back arched. “Jared. Oh my…”

  “That’s right, honey. Say my name. Tell me how bad you want it.”

  “I do want it. I want you.”

  He sucked her other nipple, his fingers sliding between her legs to dip into her body. Libby squirmed, trying to get the pressure where she wanted it.

  “You’re so fucking hot and wet,” he growled against her breast. “And all for me.”

  “I need you to fuck me,” she moaned. “Please.”

  He lifted himself up and ripped his shirt off while she fumbled with his jeans. Then he kicked them off and grabbed a condom from the nightstand. Together, they rolled it on. And then he pressed her back and entered her in a single thrust, both of them groaning with the rightness and the pleasure of it.

  It felt so good. He felt so good inside her.

  “Hang on, baby,” he said. “I’m about to show you just how much I like this pretty body of yours. I don’t want you wondering why ever again.”

  He stared to move, and Libby threaded her hands through his damp hair, dragging him down to her mouth.

  It was a long time before either of them spoke again.

  Chapter Twenty

  Maddy and Jace lived in a cute house on a quiet street in Annapolis. It had been Maddy’s grandmother’s house, but now it was hers. Her grandmother was in a nursing home not too far away, and Maddy visited her often. She had dementia or she would have still been living with Maddy and Jace. Maddy talked about her grandmother, who she called Mimi, with such love and devotion as she showed Libby the house and told her about the remodeling that she and Jace had done so far.

  “I miss her so much. It would have been hard to sell this house and move, but Jace never thought we should. He thought all my ideas for expanding it were great and he never balked at the cost. Not that I wanted him to pitch in any money for it, but he said if we were going to live here then he wanted to help.” She turned to look dreamily at where Jace stood with Jared and Colt, talking about something they couldn’t hear. “He’s the best man I’ve ever known.”

  Jace must have sensed that she was looking at him because he turned his head and their gazes met. Libby was envious of the way they looked at each other. Like they couldn’t breathe without the other one in the room. Like their entire world revolved around that look. Like a million words passed between them without being spoken.

  It was a private moment, and yet it was there for anyone to see. And it was beautiful.

  Maddy broke the contact first, turning a bright gaze onto Libby. “Sorry, I’m supposed to be giving you the tour and all I can do is gush about Jace.”

  Libby laughed. “Don’t worry about it. I’d gush too if I was as much in love as you two are.”

  Maddy gave her a sidelong glance. “So, about you and Jared…”

  Libby’s heart thumped with secret excitement. She hoped it didn’t show on her face, but she was afraid it did. “Yes?”

  Maddy took her hand and led her from the room where everyone was gathered to the master suite with its soaring cathedral ceiling and wood beams, plush bed piled with pillows, gorgeous cream rug on the floor, and closed the door behind them.

  “Did he kiss you again?” Maddy asked. “Inquiring minds want to know.”

  There was a knock on the door before Libby could answer. It was Angie and Tallie.

  “We saw you two head this way. No talking about Jared and Libby without us,” Angie said.

  “That’s right, I need to know how wrong I was,” Tallie said with a laugh.

  Libby looked at the three of them watching her with eager faces. She thought she ought to be noncommittal, but that wasn’t her style. Not at all. She loved talking to people, and she really loved talking to these three women. They made her feel like she belonged. She didn’t know much about her life before, but she knew that was a feeling she craved.

  “He did,” she said.

  “And?” Tallie urged.

  “And yes,” Libby said with a shrug. “I got the orgasms. Way more than two of them.”

  Angie whooped. Maddy clapped. Tallie just laughed. “Geez, when you’re wrong, you’re wrong. I mean I never really got the impression he was gay, but then I started overthinking it and had myself convinced it must be the case.”

  “No, definitely not gay,” Libby said, thinking about how she’d gotten brave enough this morning to kiss her way down Jared’s body and take him into her mouth. He had a thick, beautiful cock and she’d wanted to taste it—but she’d been shy about it. Not today. And not ever again with the way he’d reacted.

  He made her feel sexy and confident, two things she thought she was probably lacking.

  “We are not asking for details,” Maddy said sternly, looking at the other two. And then she giggled. “But if you wanted to provide them, we wouldn’t tell you no.”

  Libby laughed too. “I don’t think I could do that without dying of mortification. But he’s very, very talented. Not that I can remember my past yet, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt this good with a man before.”

  Angie took her hand and squeezed. “Oh, honey. You’ll remember. And your past doesn’t really matter anyway, not when it comes to the future. Just do what ne
eds doing with Jared and see where it leads you.”

  Libby felt tears threatening. “That’s all I can do. What I intend to do. What happens, happens.”

  “Group hug!” Tallie said, wrapping her arms around everyone. The four of them hugged tight.

  There was a knock at the door and then it opened to reveal Jace, who blinked at them for a second. “Uh, the oven dinged. I didn’t know if I should take out whatever’s in there or not.”

  “Oh, I’d better check. Come on, girls. Let’s get some wine and keep talking about the boys before we eat.” She patted Jace on the cheek. “Honey, we need more girls at these parties. You need to tell the guys to get busy finding girlfriends because you currently outnumber us and we don’t like that.”

  Jace glanced at the women, then down at Maddy with a grin. “Yeah, I’ll tell them you said that. We’ll see how well it goes over.”

  Angie linked arms with Libby as they followed the others from the room. Being with these women felt like home. Libby never wanted the feeling to end. But she was afraid it would. She would remember her life, and she wouldn’t belong here anymore. Not with them, and not with Jared. It was enough to make her want to cry.

  Jared liked seeing Libby happy. She perched on a barstool at the kitchen island with the other three women. They leaned together and talked like they’d been friends their whole lives. He envied how women could do that sometimes. They could meet and then twenty minutes later you’d swear they’d been friends since they’d been in diapers. Clearly, the four of them had found common ground and seemed to enjoy talking to each other.

  But there was an edge to her tonight as well. He’d noticed it earlier when she’d returned from wherever she and the others had gone when Jace went to fetch Maddy. She still smiled and laughed, but her eyes had a wary look sometimes. He wanted to go to her and make her tell him what was wrong, but then the look would go away and she’d be happy again.

  It could be her past. He’d thought maybe she was remembering more and trying not to let it bother her, but then he was pretty sure if she remembered something significant she would come to him and tell him. It wasn’t Libby’s style to remain quiet about anything. And not to him.

  Jared frowned. At least he didn’t think so. She talked a lot and he’d gotten used to it. Liked her chatter, even. She didn’t talk much when they were in the throes of passion, but she talked plenty before and after. It was so different from the women he’d been with before. Not that he hadn’t taken a talker to bed, but he’d never listened to anything she’d said. In fact, he couldn’t recall any specific incident. He had impressions of sexual partners, but no one he could recall with perfect clarity.

  Oh, he remembered names and faces—and even where they’d met—but not what they talked about or what they did together other than fuck. Some dinners, some drinks. Some parties. Mostly, he didn’t care.

  But he remembered everything about Libby, and not only because it was so fresh. She managed to be fascinating despite not knowing much about herself. Every memory she shared interested him. She teased him and laughed at him and made him laugh at himself. He liked that. In short, she was easy to be with.

  By the time the evening was over, it was nearing midnight. Jared and Libby said their goodbyes and went out to get into his truck. He opened the door for her and then kissed her before he closed it.

  “That was fun,” she said when he got in and started the engine. “You have such great friends.”

  “They are pretty great. I got lucky when I went to work for Ian.”

  She studied him. “Maddy said it’s dangerous.”

  “It can be. I told you when I met you that I was a warrior.”

  “I know. And there were those men who tried to attack us. You didn’t hesitate to kill them.”

  He wasn’t sure he liked where this was going. “No, and I would make the same choice again. I will always protect you, Libby. With my skills if I need to. With my life if I have to.”

  “I’d prefer you didn’t sacrifice yourself for anyone.”

  Her voice sounded strained. He liked that she cared. It didn’t change the job, though.

  “I’d prefer it too. But I’m prepared to do it if it saves an innocent life.”

  She was quiet for a long moment. “What do you see happening with us?”

  He thought that question should make him uncomfortable, but it didn’t. Strangely enough, it didn’t. Was that a sign he wasn’t as unsuitable for a relationship as he’d always thought? Maybe so. He knew he wasn’t his father, and he knew deep down he’d never lose his shit and hit the woman he chose to be with. But he’d always thought there were other reasons he wasn’t going to settle down. Like his job. It wasn’t what sane people did. He watched Jace and Maddy, Colt and Angie, and Brett and Tallie, and he wondered how they were going to make it work in the long run.

  “I think we should take it a day at a time. See what happens,” he said carefully.

  “That sounds very non-committal. Not that I’m asking for a commitment. Lord, we’ve only been having sex for a few days so I didn’t mean I wanted you to ask me to marry you or anything. God, no. I mean that’s silly, right? It’s sex. Good sex, but sex—”

  “Libby.”

  She sighed. “I’m babbling, aren’t I? Sorry. I just mean that I’m not asking for anything long-term, but I like you and I like what we’re doing. I hate to think I’m going to get my memory back and this will be over.”

  He turned into his driveway and pulled up beneath the carport. Then he shut the engine off and looked at her. She was fiddling with the seatbelt and not looking at him.

  “What makes you think we’re through when you remember?” he asked softly.

  She gazed at him. “I don’t know. It’s just that I’ll go home and back to work, and I won’t see you as much. When we’re not in the same house, maybe it’ll be easy to forget me. You can go back to your quiet and your books and you’ll wonder how you ever put up with me.”

  “I don’t think you’ll be easy to forget at all.” He reached over and curled his hand around the back of her neck, tugged her gently toward him so he could kiss her. He kissed her until she sighed, until he could feel the current of her desire for him growing stronger. “I’m not putting up with you, Libby. I’m quite possibly taking advantage of your attraction to me, but I don’t much fucking care. So long as it gets me a few hours in bed with you, I’d pretty much do whatever it takes to get you naked and hot.”

  She giggled suddenly. “Well, that was remarkably honest of you.”

  “Hell, yeah. I like you, Libby. I like being with you. And I like fucking you, believe me. But even without that, I’d still like you. That’s the point I’m trying to make, though I’m not doing it well.”

  “You’re kind of babbling a bit,” she said with a grin. “Who knew you were capable?”

  He laughed. “I’m capable. Now come on and let’s get inside. I want to sleep with my body curled around yours.”

  “And so it begins,” she intoned. “He only wants to sleep.”

  “You’re so fucking cute,” he said. “What I really want is to make you beg me to let you come, but I wasn’t going to suggest it after I basically said I only wanted to get you in bed.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him. “I want to beg. Please, please, take me upstairs and make me come as many times as you can.”

  He growled. “Is that a challenge?”

  Her smile made him light up inside. “It definitely is.”

  His body was already responding, his dick swelling inside his jeans. But he didn’t move yet. He picked up a lock of her hair and rubbed it between his fingers. “Is that what was bothering you tonight?”

  Her eyes widened slightly. “What makes you think anything was bothering me?”

  “I could see it. Not all the time, but sometimes. You seemed to be thinking about something. I wondered if maybe you’d gotten more memories back.”

  She shook her head. “No, it wasn’t tha
t. It’s just…” She sighed. “I like being a part of the group, and I wondered what was going to happen when I got my memory back. Like what if I don’t belong anymore? What happens when I stop being a job you’re all doing?”

  “I think it’s pretty clear that you’re more than a job, Libby. This may surprise you, but I don’t usually wind up in bed with someone I protect. You’re a first.”

  “Oh,” she said softly.

  “Yeah, oh.” He sat back and put his hand on the door, his chest tight after that admission and her response. “Let’s get inside, honey. We can talk about it some more then, if you want.”

  “Believe it or not, I don’t want to talk. I want to feel.”

  Jared led her inside and up the stairs. They stripped in a rush, leaving their clothes strewn everywhere, then fell in bed together and didn’t speak—except for words of passion—for the rest of the night.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Libby dreamed. She dreamed of her parents and the farm, and she dreamed about the day she left, lugging a suitcase and crying because her father had told her that if she didn’t marry the man he’d picked to be her husband, then she couldn’t ever come back.

  Glory and Charity were there too. And her brother Lincoln, who’d told her it was a woman’s duty to marry and have children. If she didn’t marry Seb Wilcox, then she wasn’t doing her duty to the family.

  Seb was twenty years older than she was, and he’d been married twice before. He had eight children, four of whom were under the age of ten and still at home. And she was supposed to be a mother to them and have more children with him as well.

  She’d only been eighteen.

  When she woke with a start, the only light seeping in the cracks between the curtains was the streetlight. Her heart pounded and her throat ached. Memories crowded her mind, overflowing the edges, spilling out so fast she couldn’t keep up.

  She knew who she was. She knew where she came from.